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ANDREW JORDAN FROM JRT: I LOVE THE SMELL OF BURNING RUBBER, LITTLE CRACKS IN OLDER CARS AND THE ROARING ENGINE NOISES

14.02.2019

Andrew Jordan, well known British Touring Car Championship winner, tightens the collaboration with Motul in terms of Classic Racing. After the sale of the racing team, Andrew, his dad Mike and the whole crew reoriented into the ultimate classic racing car restoration business. We had a talk with Andrew in his immaculate workshop in Birmingham.

Andrew, most people know you as a dedicated racer and former winner in the BTCC Race class? Can we call this a career switch?

My dad Mike developed and owned his race team for over 30 years. In 2013, after winning the British Championship, we reflected on what should be our next goal. We were slowly evolving and gaining more interest in historic racing cars. During the race team period, restoring classic race cars was running at a low pace. In 2014 when we took the decision to sell the team, from there of our business rolled out as a snowball… Today, we just finished our 24th car rebuild, thanks to our fantastic and dedicated team of mechanics wo always strive to outperform themselves. We have a nice variety in classic racing cars, from Austin’s to Lotus Cortina’s and Porsche 911’s.

How did your collaboration with Motul took off?

We are huge fans and have been racing at the Goodwood Revival event for several years, where the organization introduced us to Motul. Both petrolheads, we felt there was a spark and we started talking how we could collaborate. We were already racing with several Lotus Cortina’s and Austin’s on the track. Currently we’re using Motul lubricants and brake fluids exclusively for all our restoration projects. We’re really proud we became ambassadors for the notorious brand on all race tracks and the numerous historic events we participate in throughout the UK such as Silverwood Classic, the Goodwood Revival, …

What values do you have in common?

Actually, you might say we share the same passion for history, but aren’t forgetting to introduce modern techniques. We really mix our modern racing background knowledge into the restoration business. We tend to reserve the cars in the way it looks, but in terms of performance we use modern techniques to improve results. Our track record pushes us to keep on winning! (laughs)

We tend to see on the market a huge rise in interest in the classic car business, what’s causing this you think?

We’re only a few years in the classic racing, but indeed there is a huge rise. Many people see this as an investment option, they buy a historic race car, have great fun riding it and make some money in the end. The Classic market is also less competitive and it’s an open door to build new relationships between like-minded souls. If you have been into modern racing you realize that historic racing is so pure. It’s back to the basics, you don’t need a laptop to inspect the car. It also opens up conversations, as your grandad used to own a similar car. It’s much closer to the people.

How important are partnerships and the focus on results?

In our business, partnerships are getting more important, you can share expertise and in comparison, to race-teams, there is less harsh competition and more collaboration. In the end we all want to win, but during my BTCC period, I really had a bad week after losing a race during the weekend. Results mattered more than fun. That’s not the case in Classic Racing. You just go out there to have fun and regardless the result, you drive home with a huge smile on your face. You might call it a lifestyle, a brotherly passion for technique, that’s what drives our type of business.

What’s the relevance of modern racing technology?

It’s important that technology moves on. But I really like the simple stuff. But yes, we take it seriously as we want to win and keep on improving. Although if I had to choose between a modern F1 race or the old one, I would definitely go for the old one. It attracts me more than the new one, which after all is a bit sterile. I love the smell of burning rubber, little cracks in older cars and the roaring engine noise. Where modern racing became a job for me, classic car racing really is a lifestyle.